The charges are in connection to this case and two others that happened around the same time.

“I think the nature of the crime made these defendants think that they could get away with it, because people would be embarrassed,” Beckoff said. “And I thought, you know, for the safety of my family that lives down here I have to do something. I have to come forward, I have to tell me story.”

But not everyone in the LGBT community would feel comfortable coming forward.

If their name gets associated with a gay dating app, Terry Livingston, the co-founder of Grand Strand PRIDE, said some people may feel pushback from their family or coworkers.

“In South Carolina there are no work place protections for the LGBT community, so you know it’s very possible they fear that they would lose their job if they go to the police,” Livingston said.